Frico

Sometimes the simplest things in life are the best. There is no denying that this recipe is simple. But it is also one of the best. I don’t say that lightly because if I’m going to claim that something is one of the best, it better live up to the billing.

Frico does.

Before I started my cooking show, Tiny Kitchen Big Taste, and this blog, I used to wait tables. I’ve waited tables at a host of different restaurants, from Applebee’s (when I was in college and law school) to super-fancy Italian restaurants, Valentino and its sister restaurant Posto (when I was on my way to being an attorney). A quick note, when I say super-fancy, that is an understatement…at that time, they had over 100,000 bottles of wine, with one, an 1891 Biondi-Santi, that was selling for $25,000. In case you’re interested in getting a bottle shipped to you: Click Here. 😉 ) I digress.

At the time, as a waiter, I think I always viewed waiting tables as something I was doing on the journey to doing something else. And as life goes, when you’re on the journey to somewhere else, sometimes you miss out on how good where you are today is.

That was me. I viewed it as a means to an end…a thing I did to make money in the meantime. I think it’s normal to settle into that line of thought. But looking back, I remember one defining moment that changed my way of thinking. One of my co-workers, John, worked as a server with me. He was not on the journey to doing something else. He was doing exactly what he loved…serving people at a restaurant.

For him, it was more than just serving people at a restaurant. (That’s where my thinking was short-sided and self-focused…me waiting tables was all about my journey). For John, it was about the customer’s journey and being a part of the special moments in people’s lives that he could help make even better. I remember him saying how much he loved being a server. There was great significance in helping to craft those memorable moments for people. And, he was right!

For example, a couple might come into the restaurant for a pre-engagement dinner. Little did the woman know, but her boyfriend would be proposing later that night. As servers, we were part of making that night special. Providing great service and making sure that they were having the perfect dining experience was part of helping make that special day stand out even more. It could be a birthday dinner, a business meeting, dinner with a parent, an anniversary or even just a regular dinner on a Wednesday night. As a server, I had the ability to help make that dinner special and help bring added joy into people’s lives.

From that point after John explained it, I found new significance and new importance in waiting tables and I came to really enjoy it. When I was able to make it less about me and more about others, it became fun. And we had a lot of fun! Our customers were great and so generous, wanting to share a special wine that they brought in from their cellar or remembering our birthdays. I can honestly say that many of our customers became friends and we would socialize with them outside of work.

During this time at the restaurant, I also remember eating Frico for the first time. So light. So crispy. So delicate. So much so that each individual piece would be made separately using tweezers to carefully remove the cheese from the pan, making sure the intricate laces of cheese were not disturbed.

I love that sometimes the simplest things are the best. Sometimes I wonder if, like I did with waiting tables, we make things in life more complicated than they have to be.

Hopefully, this recipe will be a reminder to enjoy the simple things…enjoy the journey…and most importantly, enjoy the moment, regardless of whether you’ve reached that destination or goal you’ve set for yourself or if you’ve just taken the first step on the journey to somewhere else.

I’d love to hear about some of the special moments you’ve had going out to eat. And let us know, too, how your Frico turns out!